


Cato - A Change in Perspective

by CaptainHulk



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:34:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 11
Words: 8,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25825183
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainHulk/pseuds/CaptainHulk
Summary: Cato is one of my absolute favorite Hunger Games characters ever written. This is a fic of his perspective in the 74th games. It's fully written, and I'm working on another that I will be posting chapter by chapter. I love ANY AND ALL feedback, so feel free to leave it. I am new to AO3, so thanks for the welcome! Enjoy!





	1. Chapter 1

Cato stood on the platform, ready. He looked around him, searching for Clove. She was about 4 or 5 pedestals from him, and his allies from 1 and 4 were somewhere in the mix. A smile touched his face. He knew what had to be done. He had seen Brutus, years earlier, kill 7 in the bloodbath. His smile grew. Time to beat his mentor’s record. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. As he heard the countdown, he crouched lightly, preparing his muscles for the sprint of his life. The cannon boomed and he sprang forward, all the muscle in his body built for this moment, to run faster than the rest. He reached the Cornucopia first. He grabbed the first weapon he recognized, a bar mace. The smile returned. Time for the fun.  
He saw people running all about, their faces were frozen with fear. His first victim arrived. The boy from 7 ran past his left side, running for an ax sitting on the weapons pile. The mace came crashing swiftly into the boy’s right side and Cato heard the bones crunch. Good. Should’ve run away. He brought it down on his neck and the boy stopped moving. One down, six to go. He took off towards a young girl, standing still near a pack on the ground. She didn’t survive to feel the second hit.  
He soon found a new boy, spear in hand, who had just killed the girl from three. Cato felt the rage fill his head. My kill. He rushed the boy, batting aside the feeble thrust he had made at his chest with the spear. The mace crashed into the boy’s kneecap, but he wasn’t finished with him yet. Cato grabbed the boy by his collar and slammed him into the side of the Cornucopia, blood spattering his jacket. Three more hits and the kid stopped screaming. He dropped him and picked up his spear, searching for more. The bloodbath had begun to subside, but there was one more he saw, a kid with a sickle sprinting for the woods. He wasn’t faster than Cato’s spear. It pierced his throat and he fell to the ground.  
“Cato!” Clove. He turned, seeing his district partner pointing to his right, at the lake.  
“What?”  
“There’s a girl over there. She just went into the water.”  
Oh. The smile touched his face once more.  
“Thanks,” he said. He sprinted towards the lake.  
He caught the girl as she tried to enter the water. He grabbed her leg and pulled her toward him, finding her collar as had he had with the other boy. When she looked into his eyes, the only thing he saw was fear. Good. Let them fear me. He ended her with a snap of her neck.


	2. Chapter 2

Cato got back to the Cornucopia to his allies claiming weapons. He found a sword he particularly liked, leather-bound, broad, but not so heavy that speed was lost. He strapped a spear to his back and looked over his allies. Soon he would kill them. But for now, they would do. He found Clove first, cleaning her knives, blood staining a few of them. Marvel was collecting his spears and Glimmer was cleaning her sword, and looked as though she was thinking about taking the bow and arrows that were piled on the stack. Then there were the outliers. The kid from 3. And Lover Boy. He felt the sneer slide onto his face. What a priss. But - he was the way to the girl. She showed him up. And he was going to kill her for it.   
“All right. Gather up. We need to collect all this food and separate it into personals for each of us. What we don’t want to carry around… well, three, I guess that’s where you come in. What’d you say you could do?   
“I can rebury the mines around the pedestals and reactivate them into to a booby trap. So if someone tries to steal, they get blown up.   
The other careers were smiling a bit. They wanted to kill him now. But why not. Let him set it up and kill him after.   
“You better do it right,” Cato smirked and addressed the others. “So - who’d we get?”  
Clove scowled. “I got the kid from nine. Almost got 12, but my knife hit her pack.”  
“I got 5 people.” The realization dawned on him that he hadn’t gotten seven. “Brutus still beat me.” A scowl crossed his face. “What’s the total?”  
Peeta answered quietly. “Eleven.”   
Cato turned to him. “You better find her.”   
“I will. I know her too well. And I saw the way she went.”   
Cato turned to the rest of the group. He smiled, one that only the other careers could see. “Well then… follow the leader, I suppose.” Peeta headed off into the woods, the Careers, all but 4 and 3 staying behind to begin the booby-trapping, following behind him. Cato walked right behind Peeta, eager to catch sight of any tributes hiding in the woods. He inspected his sword, finding no imperfections in the thin tempered steel of the blade. Even the Academy didn’t have this kind of gear. As he walked, he felt someone catch up to him, and then match his pace. He looked over and saw the girl from One there. Glimmer. What a stupid name. A few years back, her mentor had won, Cashmere. He remembered her stabbing district 2’s tribute that year, after being saved by him. Anger filled Cato. What a bunch of ninnies. He’d kill her slow.   
“Hey, there. Cato, right?” She blinked and looked at him. He looked back. Dang. She was hot.   
“Yeah.” He kept it short. It didn’t matter that she was hot. She was from One. And she had to die. “Can you use that bow?” She narrowed her eyes. He smirked.   
“Yes. I can.” She dropped back to hang with Marvel. Good. Cato didn’t have time for little girls and their batting eyelashes.   
Night began to fall on the Arena, and the Careers decided to make camp for the night. The fire burned bright and there was plenty of food between the 5 of them. Clove sat next to Cato, studying her knives, arranging them in her jacket.  
“What’s the order?” She looked at him, straight-faced.   
“Ones to torture and ones to kill.” She cracked a smile and they both started laughing.  
“If I don’t get them first, you can have them to torture,” he said with a smile. Suddenly, the reality of where he was hit him again. “But the girl is mine.”


	3. Chapter 3

Sleep fell upon the camp, and the Careers began to drop off. Cato stayed up for the first watch. The fire glowed dimly in the night, illuminating the surrounding forest. His sword glowed in the moonlight, the light reflecting off of it, enunciating its sharp edges. The fire began to heat the tip, its edges glowing red.   
“You like fire?” He looked over and saw Glimmer sitting up, her head propped up on her hand. Crap. She is so hot.   
“Uh. Yeah. I guess. I never really thought about it, but I do like the way it just burns stuff. It doesn’t care what’s in it.” She tilted her head and smiled. Nope. Nope. Don’t do that.   
Now he was pissed. “Stop doing that!” His face flushed. She snapped up, confused.  
“What do you mean?”   
“I see what you’re doing. You’re trying to get my guard down. I’m tired of it. Stop playing the silly girl who giggles at all the jokes. I know who you are. I know what you’ve trained for. You will kill me. Without hesitation.” She laughed.   
“You’re exactly right.” Now he was confused. “I was playing that angle, and yes, I will kill you and everyone else here in a second. I’ve already thought about it more than once tonight. I have a better chance of winning if I have allies, though. But have you considered, even for a second, that I might like you? Genuinely? And that perhaps if one of us must die in a week, I’d rather die having fun than being paranoid and sad.” Oh.  
“Oh.” Glimmer smiled and crossed the fire to sit next to him.   
“In your race to be the most stoic tribute in the history of the arena, you forgot that girls might actually find you attractive. At least Odair lets girls get to him.” Cato smirked.   
“Odair is a wuss. He only won because he’s a pretty boy.” She looked at him, faking shock.  
“And you’re not?” They both laughed. What a ridiculous time to hook up with a girl. In an arena where you’ll soon murder her to win. He smiled. But she was right. Better to have fun.   
He woke up to the smell of oats. His hand still clutching his sword, but his other one… mysteriously on Glimmer’s hand. His eyes shot to Clove. She was still asleep. The fire had died out, but Marvel was up, warming his breakfast with the remaining embers.   
“You fell asleep on watch. With her.” Marvel’s voice was blunt. So unlike his district partner’s flowing voice.   
“Yeah. What about it. Who’s really going to kill us? The girl? She probably got an eleven because Seneca thought she was hot. She’s a moron.”  
“Yeah or maybe she got an eleven because she has an ability. Maybe with a weapon. And Clove said she has a knife. So maybe next time instead of making out with a girl, you can actually do your job so we don’t get murdered.” Marvel had risen now, his body reacting with his voice. Cato rose to meet him, standing taller than even the boy from 1.   
“You really want to do this now One? Cause I’ll kill you right here and now! I’ll gut you like a fish you piece of trash!” His hands burst out, shoving the boy from One down. He followed, his fists leading his body. They connected twice, each time rewarding Cato with a burst of blood. Then the hands came over his chest, pulling him off of Marvel. The kid just sat there on the ground, bleeding. What an idiot.   
“Cato! What the hell?” Clove stood behind him, her daggers at the ready. “I thought we were being attacked!” Cato just laughed.   
“No, I was beating the crap out of One. He opened his big mouth.” She glared at him.  
“I don’t care how big his mouth is. Now isn’t the time to fight each other. That’s for later. Now - we’re allies. You know what we were told. And fighting your allies isn’t a great way to get sponsors.” She turned to Peeta. “Move faster next time. He could’ve killed him.” Cato turned away and smirked. He looked at Marvel.   
“Hands up pretty boy. When we’re down to the finals - I won’t be using my fists.


	4. Chapter 4

They saw the fire as they headed back to camp. The smoke rose into the sky, not far from where they were in the woods. The Careers ran towards it, whooping and hollering, giving any sensible person time to flee. They found the girl from 8 asleep at the fire. They surrounded her, blocking any sort of escape.   
Clove’s eyes glimmered, her hands already searching for the knife she wanted to use. “What do you want to do with her?” She smiled, her hands finding a serrated knife on the left side of her vest.   
Marvel spoke first, the deadly smile creeping onto his face. “Let’s make her realize her mistakes. She likes fire, right?” The other Careers laughed, their faces lifting with the idea of the torture.   
The girl stood in the middle of them, her hands pushed outward, fending them off. “Please! Don’t! I can help you! I’ll do anything!” Her eyes filled with tears, her body crumpling to the floor into a fetal position. The Careers’ laughter grew.  
Glimmer spoke this time, her laughter encompassing her voice as she spoke. “Make her take her clothes off! We can get a show!” More laughter ensued as the girl whimpered on the floor, her voice obscured by the ground.   
“Stand up and strip, 8.” Cato stood against a tree, his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “Maybe if you do a good job we’ll let you live.” His smile opened wider at the prospect of letting her believe she would live.   
“Please no. Please.” Her voice broke with the humiliation of the moment. She knew she would die. But not like this. “I will do anything. Just please -”  
“Shut up and strip or I’ll do it myself. And I may accidentally use my knives as I go.” Clove’s voice rang through the trees, her smile evident even in her voice, but it was a humorless smile. A cruel one.   
The girl stood, removing her clothes. She stood before them, their gazes lingering on her body.   
Marvel smiled again, the same cruel smile Clove wore. “Dance for us, 8.”   
The girl began to dance, the tears streaming silently down her eyes. The Careers laughed, their weapons heating up in the remains of the fire. Their tips glowing red hot. Glimmer grabbed her sword and pressed its edge against the girl’s breasts, her eyes glowing with hate. The girl screamed a bloodcurdling scream heard all across the woods, once more crumpling to the ground. The jeers roared louder now. They took turns pressing their blades against her body, their edges pressing into her bare skin, the flesh ripping off as they removed their blades. Their laughter drowned out the sounds of the birds in the trees. Cato took his sword and pressed it against her breasts once more, its tip cutting into them, her screams echoing off the trees into his ears. She stopped moving soon after.   
“Show’s over girls and boys. She’s dead. Let’s move on.” Cato stood and walked off, back in the direction of the Cornucopia. The Careers jeered and mocked the girl’s screams, their cruel voices imitating her pitiful pleads. Cato turned back and looked at the group.   
“Where’s the cannon?” He looked confused. The girl had stopped moving. Why wasn’t there a cannon?   
Peeta looked at him. I’ll go back and finish her off. We must not have killed her.”   
“Fine. Make it quick.” Peeta left to tend to the girl. Glimmer looked at Cato and Clove, keeping her voice low.   
“Why don’t we just kill him now? We haven’t found the girl, and he’s just taking up space.” Cato smirked, considering her plan.  
“He’s our best chance at finding the girl. He’s handy with that knife, anyway. Maybe he can help us take down the big kid from 11.” The cannon went off. Peeta returned, blood staining his knife.   
“She’s dead now.” Cato smiled. Prove your worth now. You won’t get more chances later.


	5. Chapter 5

The Careers got to camp to find a fully stocked pyramid of gear, with odd patches of earth surrounding it. The boy from 3 explained how the mines worked, how they were arranged, but no one really listened after he explained that he could disable the mines when they needed something.   
“Good job.” Cato stood next to the pyramid, examining a bag of apples sitting on the second level of goods. He turned and unstrapped the spear from his back, giving it to the boy from 3. If you attack one of us, we will kill you more slowly and painfully than we did the girl from 8.” The boy looked stricken, his eyes flicking between the spear and Cato.   
“Okay,” he said quietly. The other Careers had begun to make camp at the mouth of the Cornucopia as night fell upon the Arena once more. Clove took the first watch, though she asked Cato to stay up with her. As the rest of the Careers fell asleep after a night of laughter and good eating, she turned to him and considered him for a moment.   
“You like that girl. Don’t you.” Not a smile.   
“No. She’s a little priss who I can get some fun out of before I kill her.” He said the words without conviction, absently cleaning his knives. She could tell he wasn’t lying. After years in the Academy, they had been through a lot together. She didn’t want to be with him in the final two. His words had only confirmed the knowledge that he would show no mercy. That’s good. For the Alliance. Not for the person left alone in the Arena with him.   
“Good. Though, if we want some sponsors, maybe you can have a little more fun with her. I bet the Capitol eats it up.”  
“You realize that they can hear every word you’re saying, right?” She laughed.  
“I don’t think the Capitol cares where it gets its entertainment, as long as it exists. Whether or not it’s fake is irrelevant as long as it’s believable.” He chuckled. She wasn’t wrong.   
“You mean now?” She smirked.  
“Sure. I’ll go to sleep.” She laid down and promptly fell asleep. Cato rose and moved over to Glimmer, taking a curl of hair and tucking it behind her ear. She woke immediately, her eyes alert and searching until they found Cato. They softened. She smiled.   
“Couldn’t wait, huh?” He laughed, his mind on the conversation with Clove. But she didn’t need to know that.  
“You’re just too beautiful to wait for.” He smiled and took her jaw into his hand, moving his face closer to hers until their lips touched. He moved his hand into her hair, running it through her curls, kissing her passionately. She grabbed his arms, steadying herself. He pressed his tongue into her mouth, swirling it inside her mouth, her tongue moving around his. She pressed harder, swirling her tongue faster now, more intense, her breaths becoming rapid. They began to move faster together, their hands grabbing each other. He put his hands on her waist, kissing down her neck. She leaned her head back, bracing her hands on his chest. He stopped short of her neckline. He looked up, into her eyes. She met them, her eyes confused, wondering why he stopped. He smiled.  
“I’m not sure I should continue. After all, you’re normally supposed to take these things slowly.” She burst into quiet laughter, tears filling her eyes.   
“You’re not serious, right? I don’t care how far this goes how fast. We’re about to die. So if you want to do this thing, let’s do it right.” She smiled a wicked smile. He returned it.   
He woke to Glimmer sitting over him, pulling her clothes towards her from under the covers. He smiled.   
“Good job?” She turned and saw him. She burst out laughing.   
“Very. I was quite… pleased.” He laughed and grabbed his clothes and put them back on, just as she was doing.   
“Good. Want to help me make food?” She smiled and rose. The eggs were fantastic.   
The day went on very smoothly, with the Careers hunting in the woods and the boy from 3 back at base, keeping an eye on the pyramid. Sleep went much the same, and Cato woke to Marvel staring into the woods.   
“Anything happen?” Marvel turned.   
“Nope. Maybe today is our lucky day.” Day four. Maybe it is. Then they found the girl.


	6. Chapter 6

She was in the lake when they saw her, just sitting in the water, looking as though she was sleeping. Marvel saw her first, shouting out.   
“It’s her!” Cato’s eyes narrowed and he began to sprint, pushing all his strength into his legs. Stupid girl. She’d made him look weak. And he was going to make her look like dirt before she died. When he got ahold of her… the girl from 8 was child’s play.   
“When we get to her - I kill her. In my own way.” He heard grunts of agreement behind him, conceding his claim to her life. He saw her begin to climb up a tree, and he knew they had her. He stopped at the tree and waited for his teammates to catch up to him at the tree. Once they got there, he looked up, scanning for her. She was high up, crouched on a large branch. He began to climb, one branch at a time. It was easy, his muscles having been prepped for his entire life. He was getting closer, she began to climb once more, ascending to get out of reach. Oh no, you don’t. You still want to be the girl on fire? He put his hand on a branch and immediately he knew something was wrong. Crap. It broke, sending him back towards the ground, and the impact took the breath from his lungs. His eyes glowed with rage. He was really pissed off now. Glimmer walked forward, her bow in hand. She missed. And she said she knew how to use her bow. He grabbed it from her hands, knowing that he could do the job she couldn’t. He aimed, his training kicking in, released a breath, and let go, the arrow flying true. But she ducked around the tree before it made its mark. She plucked it from the wood.  
“You should throw the sword up too!” She laughed. Cato lost it. He’d burn the tree down. He was about to grab some wood for a torch when the boy stepped forward.   
“Let’s just wait her out. She has to come down eventually to eat.” Cato’s head shot toward him, his eyes trained on Peeta’s. He thought for a moment.   
“Fine. We’ll make camp for the night.”   
Night fell quickly, and with it came a sense of calm. In the morning, they’d have their girl. For tonight, they’d enjoy themselves. They all stayed awake tonight, occupying themselves separately. Clove was throwing her knives, practicing on the surrounding animals. Cato sat by the fire, staring into his blade. He spit onto it, its heated metal colliding with the cool saliva and it hissed. He smiled. Glimmer, who sat beside him laughed.   
“Boys.” She rolled her eyes. They fell asleep with Clove and Peeta on watch, her head on his shoulder. He woke up to hell.


	7. Chapter 7

There was not a more profound word to describe the pain he felt than hell. The stings bit into his body, and he shot up immediately. For the first time in the games, he was scared. Because this was not a beast he could fight. So the other option took control. He ran. And he ran faster than he ever had in his life, his stride outpacing every competitor to ever compete in the games. The lake. That was all that ran through his mind and soon came the all-relieving sensation of the water on his stings and the pain began to subside. It was a quarter minute before the other Careers even reached the lake. As they returned, he had found the bugs around him and drowned the ones attacking him. Now he wasn’t scared. He was pissed. And he knew EXACTLY who to be pissed at. The girl. He would strip the flesh from her body. And he would make it so slow… He snapped out of his fantasy. He looked around him, accounting for the others. Where was the boy? He snapped his head around, finally seeing Peeta surge back into the trees. He bolted after him, vowing not to let the punk kill her before he himself could. As he reached their old camp, he heard something. Voices.   
“Run! Katniss, run! What’re you doing?! Go!” The boy. The boy was telling her to run. Cato forgot what happened after that. In his anger, he felt something rise out of him lime he had only felt in his first kill, with that prick at the academy. He still remembered the feeling of the boy’s brains splattered on his knuckles. His sword was in his hand, and when he reached the boy, he swung it in a deadly arch, its blade just barely being deflected by the boy’s machete blade. Again he swung, and again, every slice an arc that would end Peeta’s life. But the boy was fast. And he knew how to fight.   
Peeta was kept on the defensive, overpowered by the larger boy, only barely being able to parry or dodge his strikes. Cato finally decided to end it, his sword thrusting towards Peeta’s heart, and Peeta reflexively kicked out, his feet hitting Cato’s stomach. He growled and leaned over, but his sword was still moving, still seeking its prey. And it finally found it. It struck into his leg, deep, and Peeta knew he was dead. The pain overwhelmed him, and he fell to the ground. Cato stood over him, his neck bulging with rage, his eyes still clouded over with his anger.   
“Cato!” Clove’s voice was near. Cato turned his head, just for a moment, but in that instant, Peeta struck out with his sword, his blade just cutting the larger boy’s calf. He yelled, the pain causing him to stumble, and Peeta used what remaining adrenaline he had to disappear into the forest. Cato cursed.   
“Clove! You made me lose him! The boy turned on us.” The Careers exploded into anger, their suspicions being proven true. Cato examined his wound. Small cut. Simple to fix. But the boy’s cut? That would take Capitol medicine to heal.   
“I cut him though. I was about to end him, but I got him right in his thigh. Deep. He’ll bleed out or get infected. There’s no way he has enough sponsor money to survive that.” A small wave of relief spread through the group.   
“Well, at least he’ll die.” Clove stood over the campfire, examining the nest that had fallen on them. I think this is a tracker jacker nest. Wait. I haven’t seen Glimmer. Or 4. Have any of you seen them?”  
Marvel spoke up, his voice almost… sorry. “They didn’t make it to the lake. I never saw them behind me, and it heard screaming so - I think they died from the venom.” Silence. Well, I guess that clears up my relationship, thought Cato.   
“Alright. Let’s head back to the Cornucopia. Maybe we have some medicine for this crap.”  
When they arrived back, the boy from 3 told them that they should have taken out the wasp’s stingers, but it had been too long. The venom was going to be more potent, despite the medicine they found amidst the stash. On the way there, they had begun to experience the hallucinations. Once back, the crashed, the night wearing on in a high, painful fever dream.   
The next two days passed fleetingly, revolving mostly around recovery. The medicine greatly helped, but the pain of the stings seemed to stay longer than the hallucinations. The Gamemakers wanted pain, but functionality. That’s what they got. On day eight, things began to return to normal. The pain had subsided, and Cato had begun to hunt again. He left early in the morning, wanting to be alone. He grabbed a spear from the pile, strapped and to his back, and sheathed a knife onto his belt. Sword in hand, he entered the forest. Then he came upon them. Ashes. They were still warm. He sped up, his search more excited now. He was on the trail. Not the girl. She was too smart for this. But that boy from 10. He was still alive. He felt a smile edge its way onto his face, the first in days.   
He found him peeing. He couldn’t help but laugh as the boy turned, his face filled with shock and fear. The boy uttered one word.   
“Crap.” He pulled out a scythe. Cato was surprised. Somehow this fool had made it out of the bloodbath. Well, no matter. He’d die now.   
The boy fought well, his attacks off-putting enough to buy him time, but not so offensive that he made a mistake. But it was Cato’s power that overcame him. The sword bashed into his scythe over and over, it’s wood beginning to chip. The first contact met the boy’s hand, cutting it clean off. The boy screamed, his yell filling the forest. He charged, his foolhardy move costing him his life. Cato sidestepped and plunged the sword into his back, leaving the boy on his knees. He walked to his front and looked him in his eyes. And they reflected the same fear that the girl at the lake had. He winked at the boy and swung his sword. His head rolled on the ground.   
He killed him fast. At least the boy fought honorably. Just not well.


	8. Chapter 8

He returned to camp, bloodied and gory. A smile etched his face as he made his way across the plains to the other two Careers. The spotted him and met him, asking whether the blood was his own. He just laughed.   
“5 more to go.” They smiled too now, that malicious smile creeping across their faces. They craved the bloodlust, the adrenaline. And they wanted to kill that girl.   
They saw the fire in the distance, amidst the trees. They packed their gear, Cato taking more food than normal, just in case they tracked the person down for a longer time. They took off, the boy from 3 behind them, towards the source of the smoke. Cato reached it first, at fist looking puzzledly at the pile of burning greens. No sign of a camp anywhere. The others shared his sentiments. Then they saw the second fire. It didn’t take long for them to figure that it was a setup. But Clove had a plan.   
“We run straight through the second fire. There will probably be a third if I had to guess. We split up and look. If we find it, we wait for the person to appear, and then whoever is there captures them and waits for the others to meet up. We’ll decide what to do then. Sound good?” Cato smiled. He had a smart district partner. She’d have to die quickly.   
‘Let’s do it.”   
They moved quickly through the forest, soon passing the second fire site. They were almost on top of the third one when it went up in flames. The smile returned. They got her.   
She didn’t see them coming. She was running through the woods when she heard them, their heavy footfall crashing through the woods. They got her before she could evade. Quickly putting his hand over her mouth, Cato looked into her eyes. That same fear once again permeated her eyes. He laughed and looked to his allies after stuffing a gag into her mouth.  
“What do we do with her?” Clove walked over, her eyes searching the girl’s.  
“Set a trap. I bet 12 would come. Even if she doesn’t know her, she might come for a kill. It’s worth a try. If nothing happens, we just kill her after a while.” She looked at the girl. She lowered her voice. “We act as though we left, and she’ll think we left her for dead. Maybe she’ll call out or something.” Marvel looked at her, uncertain.   
“Why would she call out? What if they’re not allies?” She considered.   
“Well, then we’ll kill her. But it’s worth a try.” Cato grunted his assent. Marvel agreed, and they put the girl in a net, strapping her body to a tree. Not the most refined system. But who said murder was elegant. They made camp, preparing to spend the night so that in the morning, they could leave the girl. Boom. But this was no cannon. This was an explosion. And only one place in the arena had that kind of firepower. Cato took off, Clove in pursuit. He yelled back to Marvel.   
“Stay here! Keep an eye out. 3, come with us!” They sprinted to the plains, their excitement to find their next victim overwhelming any thought of hunger or exhaustion. They reached the camp to a base of… nothing. Ruins scattered the ground, the pyramid of supplies destroyed. And there was not a corpse. The boy from three died before Cato knew what he was even doing. With a crack of his neck, he fell to the ground. Boom. This time it wasn’t an explosion.   
“Cato! We could have used him!” He jerked around, his eyes meeting hers.  
“Shut up! That pig destroyed everything!” He paused, letting the sweet taste of the words fill his mouth, his only consolation from his anger. “So I killed him.” She spit, storming off to salvage what she could of the wreckage. Boom. Boom. As they searched, two cannon shots went off, relatively close to one another. Cato looked at Clove.  
“Either it’s us three vs. three, or it’s us two vs. four.” She smiled. “They’ll all die anyway.”


	9. Chapter 9

Marvel never returned. That night, they looked up to see his face light the sky. Their fire burned bright as they sorted through the food they had remaining. Only enough for about two days, even with extreme rationing.   
“Well, crap. It’s almost day ten and we’re almost out of food. These things sometimes go on for weeks.” Cato’s voice was worn thin. He was sick of this game. He just wanted to kill people and leave. Clove looked at him, her eyes reflecting something… something he had seen when he looked in the mirror. The malice shone through her eyes, implanting itself in his mind. But also, something else. A loathing. But not for him.   
“Well then let’s just kill our competitors, kill each other, and leave. We can do it fast.” He realized she didn’t even loath the people she killed. Oh, she had no love for them, and killing was an enjoyable sport - but she loathed the people who put her there in the first place. The Capitol. And suddenly he realized just how similar they were. He hated the girl from 12. He hated her for showing him up. But he didn’t hate that boy from 10. He was just a means to an end. And his death was enjoyable. But there was something more. Something he couldn’t comprehend, couldn’t even put a name to, but it was there. A thought, an idea.   
“Sounds good to me.” The words were cold, unfeeling, unflinching. No need to worry about an idea without a name. Only the need to worry about the people to kill.   
“We need that boy from 11. He’s the threat here. The girl, well, who knows what she can do. She’s obviously able to hunt because she’s been alive this long, but I have no idea how she hunts and what her weapons are. But she got an eleven. She’s in those woods somewhere - but that boy. He hasn’t been seen all games. And he may not have gone to the Cornucopia, but who knows what sponsors he has. He could be doing anything, without opposition. He needs to die.” She spoke clinically, her voice void of emotion. Cato nodded, his thoughts similar to her own. Tomorrow? She smiled.   
“Deal.”   
Sleep came swiftly, and the morning came with little food and a lot of sweating. The air was thick with heat. They moved out swiftly, their legs quickly bringing them to the fields of wheat. They crossed over, into the rolling blades, and began to search. Side by side, the two made an imposing figure, their size forcing the grains to the ground. Hours passed, little happening in the way of hunting. They did, however, find sections of ground flattened down, even areas with entire sections of grain missing its head. He was here. They began to return to camp, however, as night fell on the arena. They ate some of the grain heads on the way out. Tasted like crap - but they idled their stomachs. Then the announcement came. The announcement that changed the games. They weren’t alone anymore. He looked to her, finally seeing something more than a temporary ally. He saw a friend.


	10. Chapter 10

They kept hunting. Their food ran out. They ate the tops of the grain. The games were no longer a game. Not since the pyramid blew. Their faces grew gaunt. Growing up in two, they knew very little about starvation or lack of food. But they were beginning to experience it. Clove began to slow down, her body unfamiliar with the lack of energy. But somehow, inexplicably, it only made Cato stronger. Like something out of a book, the more that they lost, the angrier he became. His desire to kill grew. He started to become the animal the other tributes thought he was. The only thing tethering him to sanity was a girl. Not love, not a crush. But companionship. Clove was, in his own mind, the only thing he had left. Her and death. He would kill every creature that stood in the way of him and his goal. And the boy was next. They entered that stupid wheat every day and every day they didn’t find him. But when they did… he’d rip his limbs from his body.   
Two days passed this way. Hunting, going back to the Cornucopia empty-handed, barely getting enough to eat. It was on the second day that they finally caught a glimpse of him. It was in the area with the lopped-off wheat heads. They saw his massive frame, just for a moment, before it disappeared into the grain once again. Cato wanted to chase him - but the night was falling, and they were on his turf. All Cato kept thinking about was the boy’s size. He’d gotten bigger. But Cato had gotten deadlier.   
Then, at the end of the second day, it came. The blessing that ended all the pain, the biting hunger that surged through their bodies. They got a sponsor gift. It was a little, very little. But it was enough. Two pieces of bread and some cheese. But they felt like kings. Then, to top the day off, there was an announcement. There would be a feast. A feast of what they needed most. And what they needed most was obvious. They needed food - and it just so happened that it was also a perfect time to catch their big boy. He needed something too.   
They had a plan. Cato would remain on the edge of the cornfields, looking for the boy. Clove would stay at the edge of the treeline until the girl showed up. The perfect trap. The only two threats to their games, eliminated with one day. This was more than a feast. It was the gamemaker’s personal gift to the Careers.   
He stood in the field, his bloodshot eyes scanning the fields, looking for any sign of the dark skin, the massive size. He stood for what felt like hours. He got bored. When was the fun going to start? Then the screaming started.   
Clove. She cried out his name, her voice in pain. She was going to die. He felt it. He sprinted, his legs pulling him forward, matching the speed that pulled him away from the tracker jackers. He ran his fastest when his life was on the line - and in that arena, with nothing else but her, Clove had become his life. She was his second hand, his ability to cope. He broke through the trees in time to see the boy run back into the wheat. Blood. He saw blood on the boy. Whose blood? Then he saw her on the ground. Clove lay, her head crowned with a dark pool. He ran to her, everything around him forgotten but her. His district partner. His ally. His friend. Then it came. The black smog, smothering his sadness. He felt nothing. Not the hunger, not the sun, not the blood on his hands. He felt only anger. It overpowered him. It sickened him. It made him powerful. More powerful than he had been in his life. He had grown big, been born strong, trained powerfully. But he had never felt so deadly.   
He took off in pursuit of the boy. Somewhere in the recesses of his mind, he reasoned that only one person could kill her with such brute force. The boy with the blood. The big one. He had their feast.   
He forgot his sword, left it on the ground in his anger. But he still had his spear. Night fell on the arena, the glow of the moon highlighting each strand of the wheat, their golden heads glistening in the moonlight. But Cato did not sleep. He did not rest. He did not stop hunting.  
It was the morning when he found him. 11 had grown. He’d grown a lot. He probably had a good 15 pounds on Cato now. But Cato didn’t care. He didn’t care that the boy had a bodysuit. He didn’t care that the boy had a sword. He didn’t care. He just wanted to kill him for taking her from him. He attacked with a vengeance.   
He rushed Thresh, his spear aimed to kill. Thresh took a swing, his blade singing with the force of the attack, its edge whistling through the air. Cato dodged back, letting the blade pass in front of him before jabbing quickly at his chest. It hit a wall. The spear bounced off, its tip breaking on the Capitol made armor. He threw his now useless stick to the ground, charging the Thresh. Thresh swung, his blade clipping Cato’s thigh, the pain burning into his bone, but he ran through it, his body crashing into the larger boy’s. He screamed, his anger overcoming him. He pounded the boy’s face, his fists crashing into his face again and again. The boy yelled now too, his arms surging up to grapple with Cato. He was strong. He fought for control, his strength surging up now, pushing Cato onto his back, his sword in hand. He raised it, his blade aimed for his throat, but Cato moved fast, his hips twisting to flip the fight once again, the blade scraping under his eye as the larger boy began to bash his face with the hilt of the sword. His nose broke fast, the blood gushing into his mouth, and into the other boy’s eyes. Cato smiled. Good. Let’s blind him. He swung his fists once more, connecting over and over again. He felt cracks and breaks under his hands. He didn’t know whether it was his bones or Thresh’s. The boy pushed with all his might, his strength finally repelling Cato off of him. They both rose, to face each other once again. Thresh looked into his eyes, his face broken. His eyes were swollen, his cheeks shattered, his nose bashed beyond repair. He spoke, his voice deep, without remorse or anger.   
“I killed her. For Rue. Now I’ll kill you. For my district.” He charged, his weight giving him momentum, barreling him forward into Cato. Cato rolled to the side, retrieving his stick, and rose once more. He looked back into Thresh’s eyes.   
“You can try, ass-wipe.” He threw the spear’s shaft, it’s edge serrated and splintered wood. The shaft flew true, it flew fast, leaving no time to dodge or counted. It flew into the boy’s eye, ramming into his brain. He collapsed immediately, his brains splattering the ground. Cato stood over his body, for the first time in the games, unsmiling after a kill. This kill wasn’t for sport. It was for survival. For Clove.   
He equipped himself with the body armor, it’s form changing shape fitting him perfectly. He picked up the bad marked “2,” and returned to the Cornucopia. Retrieving his sword, he made camp and looked in the bag. Inside was food. So much food. He ate until he threw up. Then he ate some more. His stomach full, his anger subsiding, he finally slept. He woke to the cannon. It was down to three.


	11. Chapter 11

The dogs came soon after he woke. At first, he had no clue what they were, but as they approached, he saw their size and knew what was happening. The games were due to end. Cato had gone into the forest in search of the girl, his fractured mind setting out to end these games as fast as possible. He took off running, his strength returned after last night’s feast, his muscles thrusting him through the forest. They were right behind him. And he knew that he was only ahead of them because the Gamemakers wanted him to be. He ran for what felt like hours, his breath drawing short, but his supply of adrenaline supplying him with energy enough to sustain his sprint. He crashed through the trees, his eyes wide, his breaths sharp. He felt a tap on his chest. An arrow had hit him. But he was alive, and his body shield worked. Keep running. Don’t look back. He ran to the Cornucopia, scrambling up it’s bare sides as quickly as humanly possible. He looked back. He saw Katniss and Peeta emerge from the forest, the dogs on their heels. He breathed deep, catching his breath for the fight that was sure to ensue. He had dropped his sword in the commotion. His spear was in the wheat. He had only his knife strapped to his belt. They climbed up, encountering problems, but none that they failed to work through. They sat there, their chests heaving, out of breath. Time to win the games. He rose, his arms surrounding Peeta’s neck, yanking him into a standing position, all of his power and strength baring into the boy’s neck. He felt life leaving his body. The girl stared at him, her eyes dark, merciless. She looked into his eyes and he saw… He saw the same hate he had seen within Clove’s own eyes. And he finally understood.  
He had lived his life in service of the Hunger Games. He had prepared to die for the Hunger Games. For honor. For District 2. It had been his lifeforce, the very thing that gave him reason to continue. But that idea, that nameless idea suddenly had a name. It suddenly took form. And he finally understood that hate. He was but a pawn in the games. He had believed he was important, but he didn’t matter. He was meant to die. He was always going to die. From the moment he had spoken the words “I volunteer as tribute.” And that hate filled his body. He let it take control of his will. He let it shatter his mind.   
The arrow struck his hand a millisecond before he threw the boy, but his body’s natural instincts took control. He lost his balance, his body tumbling down the Cornucopia into the pack of mutts below. They bit at him, but the pain never came. Their teeth couldn’t penetrate his armor. He retrieved his knife and began to kill, his hate fueling his power, his knife a pure arch of death. He made his way to his sword, and began to use it to fend off the dogs. But power is futile. Energy is limited. He began to fade, his arms growing weary. But his hate did not shrink. He collapsed, the mutts attacking every bit of exposed skin. But he remained. He survived. His disgust with the world keeping him alive, so that for the moments he had left he could hate. The dogs pulled him into the cone, tearing at his flesh. The night began to pass, and yet he still remained. When he saw Katniss, he couldn’t feel his face. His hands were torn off. He looked into her eyes, and finally felt it. Fear. But not for death. For the uncertainty of what death brought. Tears filled his eyes for the first time since his childhood.   
“Please.”   
The arrow entered his skull as he began to weep. 

Author’s Note - I honestly don’t think Cato is completely evil - which sounds awful, but hear me out here. He was born into a society in which his thoughts were okay, and even smiled upon. Evil is the idea that someone knows something is wrong but does it despite it - yet Cato believed he was doing RIGHT. Not to say that he is less sickening, but I just wanted to show that he is a creation of his society. He was an example of the anger and hate that the Capitol bred. Anyway, food for thought. I hope anyone reading enjoyed, and PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE leave reviews saying what you liked, didn’t like, and if you have any ideas for future fanfictions. Thank you for reading!


End file.
